| Understanding how different lighting | | | | eyes. |
| affects an image is half the work of | | | | Diffused light |
| creating better photos. This article | | | | Diffused light is non directional light, |
| aims to give a brief overview of the | | | | where the intensity of light is even; |
| different types of light you might | | | | for example, an overcast day. This light |
| encounter as a photographer and how to | | | | is fantastic for portrait photography as |
| use them to your advantage. | | | | it creates little or no shadow on a |
| Direct light | | | | person's face. This is quite flattering |
| Looking through the family photo album | | | | to most people. For the same reason, |
| the other day, I noticed a recurring | | | | diffused light is also useful in macro, |
| theme; photo after photo of us squinting | | | | or close up photography. The evenness of |
| into the sun looking like ghosts with | | | | light allows you to capture detail in |
| our flat, white faces and dark holes | | | | your subject that might otherwise be |
| where our eyes should have been. This is | | | | lost to overblown highlights or deep |
| one of the most common mistakes people | | | | shadows if taken in direct sunlight. |
| make when taking photos in direct | | | | There are some instances where this kind |
| sunlight. By standing with your back to | | | | of lighting can be detrimental to a |
| the sun, you effectively flatten out the | | | | picture. For instance, landscape |
| light and therefore your subject. All of | | | | photography. Taking a picture of an |
| those interesting lines and textures | | | | expansive scene with a flat grey sky and |
| disappear and you are left with a one | | | | dull colors through the landscape is |
| dimensional image. If you are shooting a | | | | just plain unappealing. For these |
| portrait, you force your subject to look | | | | instances some sunlight is preferable to |
| directly into the sun. This makes it | | | | create some interest in the sky and |
| difficult for them not to squint or | | | | contours of the land. |
| contort their face into all sorts of | | | | Different lighting conditions are useful |
| unappealing shapes. If you are shooting | | | | for different situations and different |
| in the middle of the day, when the sun | | | | types of photography. The thing to |
| is high, the shape of their brows can | | | | remember is that we cannot alter the |
| also create dark shadows over their | | | | weather, but we can alter our approach |
| eyes, effectively removing the most | | | | to taking pictures to cooperate with it. |
| effective feature in a portrait. | | | | Be prepared for all situations and have |
| This kind of light does have its | | | | a couple of different ideas when you go |
| advantages, especially early morning and | | | | out. If you want to take family |
| late afternoon when the sun is low in | | | | portraits and find the light too harsh, |
| the sky. The light tends to be more | | | | find a tree or shaded setting to work |
| golden and can cast a warm glow over | | | | in. Be inventive. Be adaptable. |
| subjects and create some amazing | | | | Experiment. Walk around your subjects to |
| colours. It is for this reason that | | | | get an idea of how the light changes at |
| landscape photographers like to shoot at | | | | different angles. No matter the lighting |
| these times of day. It is also quite | | | | conditions there is always a way to use |
| flattering for people as the need to | | | | them to your advantage. You just need to |
| squint is less and late afternoon light | | | | find it. |
| has a way of highlighting a person's | | | | |